Neel-Schaffer
Neel-Schaffer is a privately held, employee-owned civil engineering, planning, and construction management firm headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi, serving state DOTs, municipalities, and airport authorities across nine southeastern U.S. states via 39 offices and 600+ technical staff.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1983
- HeadquartersJackson, United States
- Headcount251–500
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Neel-Schaffer does
Neel-Schaffer, Inc. is a privately held, employee-owned civil engineering, planning, and construction management firm headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi, founded in 1983 by Hibbett Neel and Gorman Schaffer. The firm operates 39 offices across nine southeastern states (Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, Louisiana, Arkansas, South Carolina, Florida, Texas) with over 600 professional and technical employees, and is ranked 180th in Engineering News-Record's 2025 Top 500 Design Firms (a list it has appeared on annually since 1994).
The firm's service portfolio spans five core disciplines — Transportation (highways, bridges, aviation, rail, maritime, traffic, signage, multi-modal), Water (treatment, distribution, wastewater, stormwater, coastal, water resources), Civil/Site (electrical, structural, landscape architecture, site development, telecommunications, sports/recreational), Environmental Services (brownfield, NEPA compliance, Phase I/II ESAs, solid waste, storage tank management), and Support Services (CEI, surveying, drones, emergency management, project scheduling, urban planning). Two wholly-owned subsidiaries extend capabilities: Maptech, Inc. (acquired 1996) provides surveying and GIS services, and True North Emergency Management (reorganized 2010) delivers disaster debris monitoring and emergency response. Technology stack relies on conventional engineering tooling — aerial/mobile/terrestrial LiDAR, GIS, drone-based inspection, and hydrologic/hydraulic modeling — without disclosed AI/ML capabilities.
Revenue is generated through project-based professional services contracts, primarily with government clients. The customer base is heavily concentrated in state Departments of Transportation (TDOT, MDOT, ALDOT, SCDOT, GDOT), municipalities, and airport authorities, with minority exposure to enterprise and higher-education clients. Go-to-market is driven by competitive bidding and RFP responses on public infrastructure projects, supported by ENR brand recognition, multi-discipline capacity, and local office presence. Notable contract wins include a $679 million Georgia interchange reconstruction (lead design), $54.3 million I-65 interchange work, and multiple TDOT design-build selections in partnership with Wright Brothers Civil Construction. The firm completed a leadership succession in April 2022 with Joey Hudnall replacing founder Hibbett Neel as President and CEO.
Neel-Schaffer firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Neel-Schaffer
- Legal name
- Neel-Schaffer, Inc.
- Website
- https://neel-schaffer.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1983
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 251–500 employees
- Short description
- Neel-Schaffer is a privately held, employee-owned civil engineering, planning, and construction management firm headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi, serving state DOTs, municipalities, and airport authorities across nine southeastern U.S. states via 39 offices and 600+ technical staff.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Neel-Schaffer industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Civil Engineering Services
- NAICS
- Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services (5413), Environmental Consulting Services (54162), Surveying and Mapping (except Geophysical) Services (541370)
- SIC
- Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Water, Wastewater & Stormwater Compliance (BPAHAJAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Air Quality & Emissions Management (BPAHAJAI)
Keywords
Where Neel-Schaffer is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Jackson
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices9 records
Markets served
Neel-Schaffer business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Engineering Consulting Services: Professional engineering, planning, and construction management services provided to government agencies, municipalities, and private sector clients on a project basis. Services span transportation, water, civil/site, environmental, and support services disciplines.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Project-based professional services |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Neel-Schaffer product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Neel-Schaffer is a multi-disciplined engineering, planning, and construction management firm providing comprehensive professional services organized into five core disciplines: Transportation (aviation, bridges, roads/highways, traffic, railroad, maritime, lighting, signage, bicycle/pedestrian facilities, and transportation planning), Water (treatment, distribution, wastewater, water resources, stormwater, coastal engineering), Civil/Site (electrical, landscape architecture, site development, sports/recreational, structural, telecommunications), Environmental Services (brownfield assessment, permitting/compliance, NEPA, Phase I/II ESAs, solid waste, tank management), and Support Services (CEI, drone, emergency management, project scheduling, surveying, urban planning). The firm serves government agencies, municipalities, and institutional clients on a project basis through 39 offices across nine southeastern states.
Product overview
Neel-Schaffer is a multi-disciplined engineering, planning, and construction management firm offering a comprehensive portfolio of services organized into five core disciplines: Transportation (including Aviation, Bridges, Roads & Highways, Traffic, Railroad, Maritime, Lighting, Signage, Bicycle & Pedestrian Facilities, and Transportation Planning), Water (encompassing Water Treatment & Distribution, Wastewater Treatment & Collection, Water Resources, Stormwater Management, and Coastal Science & Engineering), Civil/Site (covering Electrical Engineering, Landscape Architecture, Site Development, Sports & Recreational, Structural Engineering, and Telecommunications), Environmental Services (including Brownfield Assessment & Redevelopment, Environmental Permitting & Compliance, Natural Resources & NEPA Compliance, Phase I & II Environmental Site Assessments, Solid Waste, and Underground/Aboveground Storage Tank Management), and Support Services (such as Construction Engineering & Inspection, Drone Services, Emergency Management, Project Scheduling, Surveying, and Urban Planning). The firm also operates a Complete Communities Group that focuses on master planning, redevelopment, complete streets, transit/multi-modal, trails/bikeways, school access, and smart cities solutions. Two wholly-owned subsidiaries extend capabilities: Maptech, Inc. provides survey and GIS services, while True North Emergency Management provides disaster monitoring and hazard mitigation services.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Transportation Engineering Services
Quantifiable outcome
- ENR Top 500 Design Firm ranking since 1994, reaching 180th in 2025
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Neel-Schaffer
Customer profileNamed customers15 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Neel-Schaffer technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Neel-Schaffer partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Wright Brothers Civil ConstructioncoreNeel-Schaffer and Wright Brothers Civil Construction, LLC were selected together by TDOT for multiple design-build projects. This partnership combines Neel-Schaffer's engineering design expertise with Wright Brothers' civil construction capabilities to deliver transportation infrastructure projects.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Neel-Schaffer competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- TranSystems: Transportation-focused engineering and consulting firm with substantial highway, bridge, and CEI capabilities serving state DOTs; overlaps Neel-Schaffer's transportation discipline and inspection/resident-project-representative services.
- Garver: Headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas and operating across the south-central U.S., Garver offers aviation, transportation, water, and environmental services to public-sector clients with a comparable mid-size, multi-discipline engineering model to Neel-Schaffer.
- Kimley-Horn: Privately held, employee-owned civil engineering and planning firm with similar multi-disciplinary transportation, water, environmental, and land development practices; directly comparable ownership structure, GTM motion, and southeastern U.S. presence to Neel-Schaffer.
- Barge Design Solutions: Mid-sized, employee-owned engineering firm based in the Southeast delivering transportation, water, environmental, and architecture services to government and industrial clients; closely comparable size, geography, and service mix to Neel-Schaffer.
- Michael Baker International: Engineering consulting firm delivering transportation, water, environmental, and construction management services to public-sector clients; a comparable direct competitor in DOT and federal infrastructure work.
Broad incumbents
- HDR: Employee-owned engineering and architecture firm with strong transportation, water, and environmental practices; overlaps Neel-Schaffer in DOT work and CEI delivery, with comparable employee-ownership culture and similar mid-to-upper ENR ranking.
- AECOM: Global infrastructure consulting firm with transportation, water, and environmental practices; competes for the largest federal/state infrastructure RFPs that Neel-Schaffer also bids on, with significantly larger scale and international footprint.
- CDM Smith: Large, established engineering firm with prominent water, environmental, and transportation practices serving municipal and federal clients; competes with Neel-Schaffer in water/wastewater and CEI work but operates at significantly larger scale.
- WSP USA: Global professional services giant with deep transportation, environmental, and water engineering practices; competes for the same state DOT and municipal RFPs as Neel-Schaffer but with much broader geographic reach and overhead absorption.
- Stantec: International engineering, architecture, and environmental services firm with comparable transportation, water, and community development practices serving public-sector clients across North America.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Neel-Schaffer social profiles
Digital presenceNeel-Schaffer financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Neel-Schaffer leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles14 records
Neel-Schaffer subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
Neel-Schaffer funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Neel-Schaffer M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Neel-Schaffer
What does Neel-Schaffer do?
Neel-Schaffer is a multi-disciplined engineering, planning, and construction management firm providing comprehensive professional services organized into five core disciplines: Transportation (aviation, bridges, roads/highways, traffic, railroad, maritime, lighting, signage, bicycle/pedestrian facilities, and transportation planning), Water (treatment, distribution, wastewater, water resources, stormwater, coastal engineering), Civil/Site (electrical, landscape architecture, site development, sports/recreational, structural, telecommunications), Environmental Services (brownfield assessment, permitting/compliance, NEPA, Phase I/II ESAs, solid waste, tank management), and Support Services (CEI, drone, emergency management, project scheduling, surveying, urban planning). The firm serves government agencies, municipalities, and institutional clients on a project basis through 39 offices across nine southeastern states.
Is Neel-Schaffer a public or private company?
Neel-Schaffer is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was Neel-Schaffer founded?
Neel-Schaffer was founded in 1983. It employs 251 to 500 people.
Where is Neel-Schaffer based?
Neel-Schaffer is headquartered in Jackson, United States, in the North America region.
How does Neel-Schaffer make money?
One revenue line is on record: engineering Consulting Services.
Who are Neel-Schaffer's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are TranSystems, Garver, Kimley-Horn, Barge Design Solutions and Michael Baker International. Broad incumbents are HDR, AECOM, CDM Smith, WSP USA and Stantec.
Does Neel-Schaffer have an API?
No public API is recorded for Neel-Schaffer.
What industry is Neel-Schaffer in?
Neel-Schaffer's product category is Civil Engineering Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHAJAJ, Water, Wastewater & Stormwater Compliance, with a secondary code of BPAHAJAI, Air Quality & Emissions Management. Its NAICS code is 5413 and its SIC code is 8742.